Building construction



1944- A. A. LADON 2,356,768

' BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Filed June 22, 1942 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Aug. 29,1944. LADQN 2,356Q768 BUILDING CONSTRUCTION I Y Filed: June 22, 1942 2Shuts-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

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Patented Aug. 29, 1944 BUILDING CONSTRUCTION Aaron A. Ladon,

Evanston,

Ill., assignor to Masonite Corporation, Laurel, Miss. a corporation ofDelaware Application June 22, 1942, Serial No. 447,912

15 Claims.

My invention relates, generally, to building construction. and it hasparticular relation to the construction of roofs for various kinds ofbuildings such as grain storage bins, brooder houses, machinery storagebuildings, play houses and the like.

An object of my invention is to provide a roof structure that isinherently weather resisting and self supporting so that no additionalweatherproof covering is required and no frame structure need beprovided.

Another object of my invention is to employ relatively thin buildingboard out to special configurations so as to permit its being formedinto a cone shape and stressed so as to be self-supporting. p

Another object of my invention is to provide a roof construction inwhich two or more standard widths of building board can be assembledinto a single composite sheet so as to provide any desired roof area ina construction employing the present invention.

It is also an object of my invention to provide. for reenforcing a largearea low slope roof construction made in accordance with the presentinvention.

A further object of my invention is to provide for relieving the stressincident to the formation of the cone structure at the center and at thesame time provide at the apex means whereby the same can be readilyweather proofed.

A still further object of my invention is to provide for heat insulatinga roof construction made in accordance with my invention.

Other objects of my invention will, in part, be obvious and in partappear hereinafter.

For a more complete understanding of the nature and scope of myinvention reference can be had to the following detailed descriptiontaken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of a building construction in which myinvention. is incorporated;

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the building constructionshown in Figure 1;

Figures 3a, 3b, -3c,'and 3d illustrate diflerent stages in theconstruction of one form of roof structure employing initially only asingle sheet of building board;

Figures 4a, 4b and 4c show the different steps employed in making a roofconstruction using used in making a roof construction employinginitially four standard size sheets of building initially two sheets ofstandard size building board;

Figures 5a, 5b and 50 show the different steps Figures 6a, 6b and showthe different steps that may be followed in making a roof constructionhaving a relatively large area and a relatively small slope employinginitially a single sheet of building board and reenforcing strips;

Figures 7a., 7b and '70 show the steps that may be followed in making aroof construction in which the central portion is radially slitted torelieve the pressure and facilitate weatherproofing;

Figures 8a, 8b and 8c shows the various steps that can be followed inmaking a roof construction in which initially several relatively smallstandard sized sheets are employed; and

vFigure 9 is a cross-sectional view of a roof construction made inaccordance with the present invention and incorporating therein heatinsulation.

Referring now particularly to Figures 1 and 2 of the drawings, it willbe observed that the reference character I!) designates a generallycylindrical supporting structure which is positioned so that itslongitudinal axis is vertically disposed. It will also be noted that thesupport structure Ill has a roof II at its upper end. It is to thedetails of construction of the roof II that the present invention isparticularly addressed.

While the support-structure has been shown and described as beinggenerally cylindrical, it will be understood that, if desired, it may berectangular or polygonal, suitable steps being taken as are necessary toprovide a weather tight construction and loinder with the roof H. Thecylindrical construction for the support structure In is illustratedsince it is one of the most practical for certain uses such as grainstorage bins, silos, and the llke. The support structure [0 can beformed of any suitable material such as metal or relatively thin sheetsof building board such as Presdwood, plywood and the like.

As shown in Figure 2 of the drawings, the roof The roof structure II isin the form substanv tially of a right circular cone and in certainembodiments there is provided an aperture l3 at the apex whichfacilitates the formation of the conical scribed hereinafter. The cap His supported on.

the upper end or a threaded member i5 which, as shown, may be threadedin a nut I6 that is carried by arms I? and fastened to the under side ofthe roof structure H. A hand wheel I8 is secured to the member l5 tofacilitate moving the cap i i vertically as will be readily understood.A suitable gasket IQ of rope or the like is provided on the uppersurface of the roof construction Ii and underneath the cap M so as topermit a substantially sealed and weather tight joint therebetween. Itwill be understood that any other suitable means can be provided for beclosed by any suitable means such as a plate As previously indicated theroof construction I i is preferably formed of building board. This maybe any the hard boards such as Presdwood, plywood, Asbestos Wood orinsulation and wall boards. These materials are relatively thin. Theyare obtainable in standard widths and thicknesses. 4 ft., 8 ft., and 12ft. The thicknesses that are commonly. used are /8", 1 s" /4 and 1%"-While such building boards have considerable tensile and compressionstrengths, because. of their relatively thin character they areexceedingly flexible and, when unsupported or used fiat they can bereadily warped out of shape.

In accordance with my invention I propose to employ this relatively thinand flexible material for making a roof construction, particularly acircular roof construction that shall be inherently self-supporting.Since some of the building boards, particularly Presdwood, areinherently weatherproof, the resulting construction is not onlyself-supporting but also is weatherproof and does not require anyadditional covering The widths that are commonly used are plate 28. Thereason rorxthe opening 29 or its equivalent is to relieve the sti'es'sat the center of the plate 28 incident to the formation of the conicalroof construction. The plate 28 is then radially out along the lines toremove a wedge Y or sector shaped portion. The angular distance apart ofthe radial slits 30 governs the degree of overlap, ifa, lap joint isused, and also the slope of the resulting roof structure. Holes 3| arethen drilled along the edges of the plate 28 which face each other.Preferably these holes 3| are drilled on radial lines and are spaced sothat they register with each other in the assembled position.

Now the central portion of the plate' 28 is deformed with respect to itsperiphery. For ex.- ample, the central portion about the opening 29 issuitably supported at a substantial distance from the surface of a benchor floor and the outer periphery is moved downwardly and the spacedapart edges are drawn together sufficiently far' so that the holes 3!are-in registry. Suitable bolts 32, as shown in Figure 3c, are theninserted in the holes 3| for holding the structure in assembledrelation. It will be observed in Figure 30 that a lap joint is employed.If desired a. butt joint can be used and a furring strip placed un-'derneath it with two rows of bolt holes for registry with correspondingholes in the plate 26 along the juxtaposed edges. The resulting conicalstructure is then shown in section in Figure 30!. While the initialsquare sheet 26 of Figure 3a is relatively flexible and when picked upby one edge, it tends to bend, the resulting conical structure as shownin Figure 3d is relatively rigid and, when picked up at the edgeexhibits no tendency to bend or deform.

In some instances it may be desirable to wet the central portion of theplate 28 about the opening 29 so as to facilitate formation of the suchas paint-or'rooflng to protect it from the weather.

tively thin sheet of building board so as to form it into substantiallya right circularcone. When the building board is so stressed in the formof a right circular cone, it is arched throughout except along the slantheight. As the result of this arched configuration, the conical roofstructure is able to resist a substantial load without appreciabledeflection and a load which is far greater than the load which it couldsupport without substantial deflection if applied to the sheet when flator unstressed.

The conical roof construction can be formed of relatively thin buildingboard using standard widths and thicknesses. Various areas of roofconstruction can be made and various slopes provided as desired. Certainof the preferred formswidth and thickness such as 4 ft. by 4 it. by

conical structure. This may be particularly desirable where the opening29 is relatively small or the slope .of the roof is to be relativelyhigh.

The resulting roof structure then can be embodied in the buildingconstruction such as the roof H inFigures 1 and 2 of the drawings. Itwill be observed that it is unnecessary to provide any framing orsupport structure for the roof when it is made as described and shown inFigures 3a'through 3d of the drawings. Further, since the building boardpreferably used is inherently weatherproof, it is then unnecessary toeither paint the resulting-construction or cover it with roofing toprotect it from the weather.

In Figure 4a of the drawings there is illustrated how the roofconstruction of the present invention can be made employing twostandard.

widths of building board. For example, two sheets 35 and 36 can beemployed each being 4 ft. wide and 8 ft. long for the purpose of makinga roof structure having a diameter slightly less than 8 ft. The sheets35 and 36 are positioned so as to form a square. and are joinedtogetheralong portions of their abutting edges by a suitable furring.

strip 31. A circle "is then scribed on the upper surface of thecomposite sheet and the plate 39, as shownin Figure 4b is then cut out.An open-' ing 40 is cut in the center of the plate 39 for the purposedescribed hereinbefore. The plate 39 is then radially out along thelines 4|, the angle being determined by the slope desired. The spacedapart edges of the plate 39 are then joined by deforming the centralportion with respect to the periphery and the juxtaposed edges are thenheld together by a suitable furring strip 4| as shown in Figure 40.

In Figure a of the drawings there is shown how four standard widths ofbuilding board can be assembled for the purpose of making a conical roofstructure in accordance with the present invention. The four sheets 44,45, 46 and 41 are'arranged so that a lap joint 48 is provided betweensheets 44 and 45 and another lap joint 49 is provided between sheets 46and 41. The edges of the sheets 45 and 46 are juxtaposed and they aresecured together along portions of their respective lengths by a furringstrip 50. A circle Si is then scribed on the upper surface of thecomposite sheet and the circular plate 52 is then.

cut out, as shown in Figure 5b. An opening 53 is provided at the centerfor the reason set forth hereinbefore and then the plate 52 is radiallyout along the lines 54 to remove a wedge shaped section. The centralportion about the opening 53 is then deformed with respect to the. perihcry of the plate 52 so as to provide the conical construction shown inplan view in Figure 5c. The juxtaposed edges of the plate 52 are heldtogether by a furring strip 55. It will be observed that the edges 56and 51 of the sheets 65 and 46 are shown as being curved toward eachother in Fig. 5c. The reason for this is that the plate 52 is no longerflat but has been formed into the conical construction. However, thereis only a single bend which the building board is required toaccommodate in the conical construction rather than a double bend, sincethe edge 56, for example, is merely bent or curved in a single plane. Itis because of this property. i. e., that the material in the conicalconfiguration is subjected only to a single bend, which makes itpossible to utilize material such as building board for the purposeherein described. At the same time because of the thickness of thematerial it is possible to develop considerable stress resistingqualities because of the arched configuration.

It Will be obvious that there is a limit to the area of the roof sectionmade in accordance with the present invention where with a giventhickness of building board, the roof structure is satisfactorilyself-supporting. That is. where the material is relatively thin and thediameter is relatively great such as 15 to 20 ft.. it may be desirableto provide some reenforcing. However, when the present invention isemployed it is unnecessary to provide a complicated and expen- .sivesupport or reenforcing structure as will now be apparent.

In Figure Go there is shown a rectangular sheet 6!] which may be asingle sheet or made up of several sheets as desired and which may be,for example, 20 ft. square. A circle 6| is scribed on the sheet 60 andthe circular plate 62, Fi ure 6c, is cut out. vided to relieve thestress at the center when the plate 62 is deformed t the conicalconfiguration. In order to reenforce the construction, strips 64 can besuitably secured to the under side of the plate 62 when it is flat. Thenumber and size of the strips 64 will be determined by the degree ofrigidity required. The strips 64 can be secured to The central opening63 is prothe plate '62 in any suitable manner such as by screws, bolts,nails, etc. The plate 62 is then radially out along the lines 65 toremove a wedge-- shaped section. The central portion of the plate 62 isthen deformed relative to theperiphery as shown in Figure 6b of thedrawings and the juxtaposed edges are joined by a furring strip 66.

It is important to notethat the strips 64 can be placed in positionwhile the plate 62 is in the flat condition. This is possible since, inthe final cone shape as shown in Figure 6c, the roof structure isstraight rather than curved along its slant height. The strips then arenot required to bend to conform to the cone shape. It is a'relativelysimple matter to apply the reenforcing'strips 64 to the plate 62 when itis fiat. Obviously the strips I struction.

Instead of employing strips 64 as shown in Figures 6b and 60, one ormore reenforcing rings can be applied to the underside of the roofstructure in the cone form. Such ring or rings can be suitably bolted orotherwise secured to the roof structure as desired.

Instead of providing an opening at the center .of the sheet forrelieving the stress, this end can be accomplished by other means- Asshown in Figure 7a of the drawings, a sheet 69 of building material isprovided and a circle 10 is scribed thereon. The circular plate H is cutout as shown in Figure 7b.

At the center of the plate li a number of radial slots 12 is cut. theslots extending, as shown, relatively short distances from the center ofthe plate II. The plate Ii is also out along the radial lines '13 toremove the wedge shaped section. The central portion of the plate Ii isthen deformed relative to its periphery to provide the conicalconstruction as shown in Figure 7c of the drawings. The generally sectorshaped 'portions provided by the cuts 12 at the center generallyrearrange themselves in somewhat overlapping position. If desired acoating of tar or other suitable weatherproofing material can be givento the overlapping portions for completely weatherproofing the roofstructure; In Figure '7c of the drawings it will be'noted that thejuxtaposed edges of the plate H are secured by a lap joint. If desired abutt joint could be used.

In Figures 8a., 8b and So there is illustrated the manner in which aroof construction in accordance with the present invention can be madeusin relatively small sheets of building board. In Figure 8a of thedrawings there is shown a sheet 15 which. for example, may be 4 ft. wideand 8 ft. long. It is out along a diagonal to provide two portions 16and 11 which, it will be observed, are right triangles. The portions 16and T1 are then assembled back to back, as shown in Figure 8b, so thattogether they provide an isosceles triangle. Furring' strips I8 can beused for joining the juxtaposed edges of the right triangular portions16 and 11. The desired number of isosceles triangular portions areassembled and the juxtaposed edges are secured together by furringstrips 19. The resulting configuration is generally polygonal but one ormore of the triangular sections is omitted, as shown in Figure 8b, topermit the deformation to the conical construction. A circle 80 isscribed on the upper surface of the composite sheet and the circularplate- 8I, as shown-in Figure 8b, is then cut out. If desired thecentral portion of the plate M can be; cut out as indicated at 82 or theconstruction. shown in Figure 7b can be followed, if it is not desiredto provide a central opening. The central portion of the plate 85 isthen deformed with. respect to its periphery and the juxtaposed edgesare held together by a furring strip 88.

In Figure 9 of the drawings there is shown a construction embodying thepresent invention that is heat insulated. For example, two conicalmembers 86 and 81 can be formed in accordance with any of theembodiments previously described. They are stacked one above the otherin spaced relation and a layer 88 of suitable insu-- lating material isprovided therebetween. This construction makes it possible toprefabricate a heat insulated roof construction in a simple andefficient manner.

Since many changes can be made in the foregoing construction and methodwithout departing from the spirit and scope thereof, it is intended thatall matter shown in the accompanying drawings and described hereinbeforeshall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim as my invention:

1. A roof structure comprising a relatively thin single sheet ofbuilding board so stressed that it forms substantially, a right circularcone whereby the roof structure isself supporting and capable by itselfof withstanding a substantial'load.

2. A roof structure comprising a relatively thin single sheet of weatherproofed building board so stressed that it forms substantially a rightcircular cone characterized inthat the roof structure requires noweather proof covering or support frame but is inherently weatherresisting and self supporting and is capable of withstanding asubstantial load.

3. A roof structure comprising a plurality of relatively thin sheets ofbuilding board with their edges secured together to forma singlecomposite sheet, said. composite sheet being so stressed that it formssubstantially a right circular cone whereby the roof structure is selfsupporting and capable by itself of withstanding a substantial load.

4. A roof structure comprising a plurality of relatively thin sheets ofweather proofed building board with their edges secured together inabutting relation to form a single composite sheet, said composite sheetbeing so'stressed that it formssubstantially a right circular conecharacterized in that the roof structure requires no weather proofcovering or support frame but is inherently weather resisting and selfsupporting andis capable of withstanding a substantial load.

5. A roof structure having a relatively small slope and a relativelylarge area comprising a relatively thin single sheet of building boardso, stressed that it forms substantially a right circuforming thecentral portion ofthe sheet with re assaree 7. A roof structurecomprising a pair of relatively thin sheets of building board stackedone above the other in spaced relation and each so stressed that eachforms substantially a right circular cone, and a layer of heatinsulating material filling the space between said sheets.

8. Method of making a self supporting roof structure from 5. sheet ofrelatively thin building board which comprises; radially slitting thesheet to remove a wedge shaped section, deforming the central portion ofthe sheet with respect to its periphery so as to close the openingleftby removal of said wedge shaped section and form substantially a rightcircular cone, and joining the jux .taposed portions of said sheet tohold the same under stress in the cone shape.

9. Method of making a self supporting roof structure from two sheets ofrelatively thin building board which comprises: securing the edges of:said sheets in juxtaposed relation along a portion of their respectivelengths, removing a circular portion from the center portion of saidsheets, zradially slitting the sheets along their unjoined juxtaposedportions to remove a wedge shaped :section, deforming the centralportion of said :sheets with respect to the periphery thereof.so :as toclose the opening left by the removal of said wedge shaped section andform substantially'a :right circular cone, and joining the juxtaposedremaining portions of, said sheets to hold the rsame under stress in thecone shape.

board which comprises: radially slitting the sheet to remove a wedgeshaped sectionfradially slitting the sheet along a plurality oflinesextending relatively short distances fromthe center, de-

. spect to its periphery so as to close the opening lar cone, andreenforcing strips secured to and of said cone being formed byoverlapping portions of said board provided byradially slitting thecentral portion thereof.

left by removal of said wedge shaped section and from substantially aright circular cone, and joining the juxtaposed portions of said sheetto hold the same under stress in the cone shape.

11. Method of making a self supporting roof structure from a pluralityof rectangular sheets of relatively thin building board which comprises:slitting each sheet along a diagonal to provide a pair of righttriangular portions, disposing the portions of each pair so as to forman isosceles triangular-portion and joining the juxtaposed edgesthereof, disposing the isosceles triangular portions in juxtaposedrelation so as to form a polygonal portion with one or more of the righttriangular portions being omitted and joining the juxtaposed edgesthereof, deforming the central portion of the polygonal portion withrespect to the periphery thereof so as to close the space left byomitting said one or more triangular portion and form substantially aright circular 'cone, and joining the remaining juxtaposed edges to holdthe resulting construction under stress in the cone shape.

12. A building construction comprising, in combination, a supportstructure and a roof structure carried by and covering the upper endthereof, said roof structure comprising a single relatively thin sheetof building board so stressed .that' it forms substantially a rightcircular cone axis is vertical, and a roof structure carried by andcovering the upper end of said support structure, said roof structurecomprising a relatively thin sheet of weather proofed building board sostressed that it forms substantially a right circular cone characterizedin that the roof structure requires no weather proof covering or supportframe but is self supporting and is capable of withstanding asubstantial load.

14. Method of making a self-supporting roof structure from a sheet ofrelatively thin building board which comprises: cutting the sheet toform a circular plate, radially slitting the plate to remove a wedgeshaped section, securing reenforc ing strips to the plate along radiallines, deforming the central portion of the plate with respect to itsperiphery so as to close the opening left by removal of said wedgeshaped section and form substantially a right circular cone, and joiningthe juxtaposed portions of said plate to hold the same in the coneshape.

15. Method of making a self-supporting substantially conical shaped roofstructure from a relatively thin building board which comprises formingthe board into a substantially circular sheet, removing a portion of thesheet at the center to relieve stresses when the sheet is de-' formedinto the conical shape, securing reinforcing strips-to the face of thesheet, said strips extending radially from points short of the center tosubstantially the periphery of the circular sheet, radially slitting thecircular sheet to re-

